Chic Home Office Decorating Ideas

On days when you work from home, having a chic home office is crucial for productivity. You need a space where you can get things done while feeling good in the space that surrounds you. I know I work much better in a well designed and considered space, one in which I feel most comfortable.

That's why I am sharing chic home office decorating ideas to inspire you to transform your own space. From furniture and desk accessories to lighting and decor, learn how a few small changes to your work from home environment can positively impact how you experience a space you may use every day.

home office built-in desk painted white with ottoman

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Does Decorating a Home Office Matter?

Yes! I get it, some people think decorating any space, let alone a home office, is a waste of time and money, but that is simply not true.

Decorating is more than just arranging pretty things. Decorating is creating a space in which you feel most comfortable. A space that feels like you and reflects what is important to you.

There are many benefits to decorating a home office, including

Increase focus
Reduce stress
Feel organized

All the things you surround yourself with should make you feel at ease, when you put a little thought and intention behind decorating.

When we had our Dream Home Office Design with Built-ins installed, I could not wait to decorate the room! It was only temporary, because it was to be my husband's office, but being able to make the office come to life was a very rewarding project.

custom home office built ins painted white

You could also shift how you view decorating. Instead of thinking you have to go out and buy a bunch of useless objects to decorate with, rethink if the things you currently have could be used as decor.

For instance, maybe you already have a tray that you can use to corral desk accessories, or a set of decorative boxes to store not-so-pretty office supplies. Take inventory and think about whether there are other items in your office that can be used as functional decor.

Choose a Color Palette

I would say choose a calming color palette for a home office, but that would be what I would do.

The reality is, everyone has different preferences when deciding what colors to bring into their workspace. Some people want to feel energized, creative, and powerful, while others prefer calm or refreshed and bright.

Shop the photo: Tall white large cachepot vase | Woven genuine leather ottoman (similar) | Cashmere plaid throw blanket (similar) | Faux hydrangea flowers, white and light green | Rechargeable lamp (similar)

Consider how you want your home office to feel while you're working away:

Red for power and energy
Orange for creativity
Blue and/or green for calming
White and creams for fresh and bright

You don't have to paint your walls in the color palette you choose. Instead, you can bring in decorative elements, desk accessories, or a rug in those colors. Sometimes it's easier to keep the walls and furniture neutral and bring color in with items you can easily swap out if you want to change things up later.

I love white painted wood cabinetry, which is why we ultimately matched our office built-ins to our trim color. It's a soft, neutral shade of white that doesn't lean yellow or make the room feel cold.

Along with the white built-ins, I decorated the open shelves with decor in my signature color palette of dusty blue, blush pink, shades of creams and whites, and natural materials. I love how soothing and calming the space feels!

Office Setup and Layout

How you set up your office is just as important, if not more, than where it is located in your home. It's not trivial to consider the layout and what will be most effective for working.

I like to start with desk placement, as it arguably impacts effectiveness at work more than anything.

Ask yourself these questions when determining where to place your desk:

Should you float your desk in the middle of the space?
Is a corner desk a good fit?
Will you face the entry to the room?
Do you want to be near a window?
Do you prefer having your bask against a wall?
Do you mind looking at a wall vs a window or other feature?

All of these questions will help you determine where to place your desk. Remember, you can always move your desk around later, and you should, to gain a new perspective as well as to keep your workspace feeling fresh.

Next, will there be other furniture in the room, such as shelves, built-ins, or a storage hutch?

Knowing where to place larger pieces of furniture can help inform the layout, especially if there are only one or two possible places something can go.

Tip:

Use Google Slides or a similar program to create a rough layout of your office. Create and move simple shapes around to depict furniture and other desk accessories. With slides, you can create multiple options to easily flip between.

You could also grab a pencil and simply draw a rough shape of your home office on a piece of paper. As you begin thinking about the layout, either cutout pieces to act as the furniture or draw them in. It doesn't have to be perfect, but it should help give you ideas about room layouts and furniture placement you may not have thought of before.

Larger furniture pieces may impact where your desk ultimately ends up in the space, but that's okay. You're just getting ideas about all the possibilities.

In our home office, my husband likes being by the window to look outside throughout the day. So, we placed his sit-stand desk near one of the windows. Later, he added an additional L-shaped desk to create a U-shaped desk setup that meets the needs of his style of working.

Get Comfortable Home Office Furniture

When it comes to home office furniture, you want to balance purchasing high-quality, ergonomic furniture that will keep you comfortable for the number of hours you work in your space each day, with aesthetically pleasing furniture.

A sit-stand desk is a great option for a home office. Luckily, today you can find affordable sit-stand desks to ensure you aren't just sitting all day long. Many desks now come with built-in cable management to keep the area organized.

We bought our sit-stand desks from Ikea many years ago. They no longer carry the exact model we have, though the Rodulf sit-stand desk is somewhat similar. While I have not tried these, I found this nice looking sit-stand desk or this sit-stand desk with a drawer and monitor stand that may work for you.

Pairing a sit-stand desk with an ergonomic chair is the best setup you can have for a home office.

Keep these features in mind when looking for office chairs:

Comfortable chair on wheels
Breathable material, such as mesh
Adjustable height, lumbar, arms, and more

If you have the option to try out chairs in person, do it. You never know how a chair is going to feel until you actually sit in it and make adjustments to suit you.

I have a simple mesh-back desk chair that fits me well. It's breathable and I can make all sorts of adjustments for ergonomics sake. One day I may change it out for a comfortable but pretty desk chair. You may like this mesh desk chair that comes in many colors or this other adjustable desk chair for your workspace.

My husband really likes his Secretlab gaming chair. He even bought a second one to use in another area of our home.

Storage and Organization Needs

Working from home typically comes with the need for some sort of storage and organization system. Shelving units, custom built-ins like ours, or a hutch easily provide much needed storage in a working home office.

I recommend a mix of open and closed storage. Our built-ins have both and I wouldn't have it any other way.

We can conceal office supplies in the closed cabinets below, while utilizing the open shelves above the desk area for styling decor and organization.

round marble dish with lid atop books in a tray on bookshelves

You can read my post detailing How to Style and Decorate Shelves if you're looking for more inspiration and many pretty pictures.

Have Multiple Lighting Sources

Like the rest of your home, it is important to have multiple lighting sources. You want a bright space to be able to see what you're doing, especially when looking at a computer screen.

Hopefully your home office has some natural light coming in a window that helps to brighten up your workspace. If you're lucky you may even get natural light from adjacent rooms, as is the case in our home office. There are two windows on two walls as well as a set of glass French doors that look into our kitchen-dining room.

Make sure you have overhead lighting, either in the form of a single light or a few recessed lights.

Add a desk lamp to your desk area or a couple table lamps, depending on how many surfaces you have. Lamps provide nice diffused light a home office needs at times. Floor lamps are another great option.

Essential Home Office Desk Accessories

You can make working from home much easier if you have a few essential desk accessories.

Keep in mind balancing desk accessories you need and use often versus items that can be stored away.

Also, think outside the box when it comes to accessories. You don't have to buy standard drab office accessories, when you can easily use chic items instead.

Use a pretty marble pencil holder or aesthetic mug as a pen/pencil holder
Find aesthetic scissors that look nice at your desk
Get highlighters in your office color palette, like I did with these pastel highlighters
A natural textured wicker tray or stunning marble tray can be used to corral desktop items together
Stack decorative boxes to hold office supplies, such as sticky notes and paper clips

Anything that sits out on your desk or goes into a drawer doesn't have to be an afterthought.

I use a very pretty daily/weekly planner from one of my favorite brands, Sugar Paper, that sits on my desk. I buy a new version each year, and I love how useful yet pretty they are.

Other desk accessories to make your home office special include a candle, decorative bowl to hold paper clips, and a cellphone stand.

Incorporate Decorative Accessories

One of my favorite things to do is create vignettes around our home as I am decorating. A little moment here, a little moment there, I love the whole process of creating! Decor can be whatever makes you happy in your home.

If you've been around Mornington Lane, you have probably noticed a consistent color palette I use throughout our home. Subtle blues, white and cream, blush pink, sage green, brass and silver elements, and natural textures make me feel most at home.

That is why I kept that same look when I decorated our home office built-ins. You can do the same with your workspace, staying true to what makes you happy.

Bring in real or faux greenery to give the space some life, like these real-touch faux white hydrangeas
Stack or lean books on different shelves for interest
Use vases and bowls for added height and scale
Decorative boxes and trays help keep accessories tidy
Unusual objects create interest and are great conversation starters

Don't forget to hang some artwork. One large scale piece of art or stack a couple smaller scale pieces as a vignette.

Think about placing a small piece of art on an open shelf with a couple other decorative accessories.

Soften the Room with a Rug

Oftentimes home offices get a reputation for being cold and lifeless. You see pictures of grey walls, cords strewn about, and no decor to speak of.

A great way to add softness and pattern is with a rug. Especially in a room with tile or hardwood flooring, a rug will reduce any echo in the room, lend warmth, add pattern and color, and make a room feel complete.

You do not need to buy an expensive rug, though you can. Find a rug in your color palette and proper size for the space. Most people buy rugs that are too small, so I always suggest going larger. Of course, you can easily determine the right size rug you need by measuring the room. Aim for about 12-18 inches of open floor showing on all sides of the rug.

We have hardwood floors, so I knew I wanted a rug to soften the space.

Given my love of classic, timeless style with a bit of coastal mixed in, I found an elegant yet inexpensive indoor/outdoor ivory light grey plaid rug for our home office.

I just love the subtle geometric pattern it brings to the room!

Of course, I have mentioned more than once that my all-time favorite rug is this gorgeous handwoven rug with subtle hints of blue, beige and creams, and a pinky-terracotta color. I initially bought this rug for our primary bedroom and loved it so much that I bought another for our living room.